I just heard about the prepper movement, yesterday on the radio. My wife and I have been in survival mode for decades already, includingthe last 30 years or more living entirely offgrid. We already have the elements that are so sought after by preppers/survivalists, which includeremote rural property, well treed with water and wildlife.I am willing to share my experience and advice to any newbies that are interested, maybe help you avoid some pitfalls and mistakes.Regards.

I am dabbling with off grid living but haven't made a full cut. I am using propane for hot water, a range, and back up radiant heat. I have a wood stove but Mrs. Antsy wanted a redundant heat source. What are you doing for hot water? How about internet?

I am dabbling with off grid living but haven't made a full cut. I am using propane for hot water, a range, and back up radiant heat. I have a wood stove but Mrs. Antsy wanted a redundant heat source. What are you doing for hot water? How about internet?

Cheers,

Antsy

Good questions, offgrid living does require some adjustments. Depending on your personal references and the size of your bank account you can go all the way from very basic to all the bells and whistles, lacking nothing in convenience. We have opted for the more basic route, with a fair amount ofconveniences, particularly in the area of lighting.For internet I use a wireless AirCard which I get through my ISP. I pay $60 + tax per month, for 6.1 gigabytes of data. For the computer itself, wehave laptops as the power consumption and battery capability works better than having a Desktop and decent sized monitor (as much as I would love to have one) the requirement for full time 120 volt AC is something I avoid. We keep it simple and use 12volt for everything we can and use 120 voltAC, through the inverter as required.I realize some people do things differently and I won't get into a debate over what is "best", this is simply our preference, based on some verylogical reasons.We heat with wood, we also have a wood cookstove, but we also use propane, this is a nice convenience as long as we can afford it. Refrigeration isa 12volt 5 cu. ft fridge (no freezer compartment) supplemented with a 5 cu. ft. propane freezer which we keep in the garage to avoid the hassle ofinstalling a vent system for the fumes.During the winter months, which is almost 1/2 the year here in Canada, we heat water on the wood heater, since it's always on.During the summer I built a wood fired outdoor water heater, which can heat up to 40 gals.I have looked at the on-demand propane heaters and know people who use them. These work very well, especially for those who have constant ACpower. I do have friends who have gone that route, everything is 120 volt AC, the inverter(s) run 24/7. This does mean higher power consumptionbut they have a proportionately sized solar array, plus a backup diesel generator.Whatever works best for you, and whatever you are comfortable with will ultimately be the "best" for you.